Better Late Then Never
by bluester07
Summary: Fluffy one shot. Jibbs. Song fic.


**Random, badly written (in my opinion), but the story line's good. Fluffy Jibbs, what else?**

Friday night had the team finishing their diminishing amount of paperwork. They had solved the case earlier that day after a long week of searching and searching for answers, but weren't the last people in the building during the late hour - most of the agency was still there. They were tired and hungry, looking forward to a work-free weekend.

"Pizza's here!" Special Agent Anthony Dinozzo called as he strutted into the bullpen, balancing two boxes of pizza in his hand.

Ziva and McGee gathered around his desk and opened the first box, while their fearless leader, Leroy Jethro Gibbs, hovered at his desk, looking up at the balcony above where Director Jennifer Shepherd stood, watching over her agency. Her eyes met his briefly and he waved for her to join them.

"Music. I will find some music," the Mossad officer announced before turning on the radio. Jethro joined his agents when Jenny walked in, and their small party began.

After ten short minutes, both pizzas had been, quite literally, devoured. They sat around with quiet but pleasant conversation being exchanged.

"Shhh! It's a good song!" Tony hushed the group, and reluctantly, they quietened as the introductory instrumentals ended and the lyrics rang through the room.

_So you sailed away_

_Into a grey sky morning_

_Now I'm here to stay_

_Love can be so boring _

_Nothing's quite the same now_

_I just say your name now _

_[Chorus]_

_But it's not so bad_

_You're only the best I ever had_

_You don't want me back_

_You're just the best I ever had _

Jenny scrunched her eyebrows as the song continued.

_So you stole my world_

_Now I'm just a phony_

_Remembering the girl_

_Leaves me down and lonely _

_Send it in a letter_

_Make yourself feel better _

Holding in a silent gasp, Jenny let the words sink in. As hard as she tried to ignore the thoughts, memories of a jacket left on a plane in DC kept coming back to her. Tears pooled in her eyes and she didn't try to hold them back - she knew she couldn't. It felt like _he _was saying those words to her. They seemed to hold so much meaning to her, a meaning only two people in the entire world would understand, and they were both in that room.

_[Chorus]_

_But it's not so bad_

_You're only the best I ever had_

_You don't need me back_

_You're just the best I ever had _

No, she wasn't the best he ever had. Shannon was. He loved, and still loves, his very first wife. But, maybe, she came second best to that.

Jenny tried to believe those five simple words. She repeated them over and over in her head like a mantra: _you don't need me back. You don't need me back. _

No matter what, though, she could never believe it.

_And it may take some time to_

_Patch me up inside_

_But I can't take it so I_

_Run away and hide_

_And I may find in time that_

_You were always right_

_You're always right _

Before she knew what she was doing, Jenny had pulled out the plug to the radio, hands shaking. She couldn't let anyone see her like this, so she walked quickly and swiftly away, forcing herself not to run. She could feel eyes boring into her back as she continuously pressed the down button on the elevator wanting the doors to open faster.

As soon as Jenny had pulled out the plug, Jethro knew something was wrong. He stood and silently followed her, stopping a few steps behind her as she anxiously punched the button that would bring the elevator to their current floor.

He rested a hand on her shoulder. "Jen?"

"What?" She snapped, not turning to face him "What do you want?"

He held her wrists to stop her from stepping into the metal box that had finally revealed itself. He easily turned her around to face him, shocked by her appearance. Her face was tear streaked, her mascara had run down her cheeks, and her eyes were red and glistening with fresh tears. "What's wrong?"

"You know very well what's wrong, Agent Gibbs." Jenny tried to pull away, but he held her on the spot.

"No, I don't."

She glared at him. "Let me go."

"Tell me what's wrong," he pleaded. All it took was one glance at his eyes to pull down her defenses. She sank to the floor and sobbed into her hands. Jethro stood for a moment, shocked by her sudden show of weakness, before kneeling in front of her and resting his hands on her shoulders reassuringly.

"What's wrong, Jen?"

She took a long, deep breath. "I... I'm sorry, Jethro. I'm so sorry."

She sounded so sincere that he didn't even bother to remind her about rule 6. And despite the confusion that could be read on the three agents behind them, Jethro knew exactly what she was apologising for.

"It wasn't your fault, Jen," he whispered.

"It was. All I cared about was my stupid five-point plan." She spat the last words like they disgusted her.

Gibbs lifted her chin and looked into her eyes. Nothing more needed to be said. They'd known each other long enough to understand.

She rested her head on his chest and he pulled her closer, holding her. They sat like this for a long time, enjoying the feel of each other's warmth after much a long time. They knew they were being observed by their agents, but they didn't care. Jethro needed this moment as much as Jenny did. Nothing would stop them.

After a while, the Director pulled back and wiped the remnants of tears from her face. Smiling sheepishly, she placed a small kiss on his cheek before they both stood.

"It's okay, you know?" Jethro assured her. "I forgave you a long time ago."

She laughed. "Then got married."

"Yeah," he said, chuckling.

"To another red head."

He smirked and pushed a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "Yeah."

She shook her head and rolled her eyes before sighing. "Thank you, Jethro."

"No problem."

"And I really am sorry."

"One word, Jen."

"Paris."

"Always."

She smiled softly and placed a light kiss on his lips, ignoring the gasps behind them, and walked away. Maybe everything would be better between them, and it was all because of a song. This thought gave Jenny the strength to walk up the stairs, away from the silver haired man. She did _not _expect him to follow her, grab her hands and spin her around. He pressed his lips to hers, and to her surprise, she kissed him back. In the middle of her agency. In front of everyone. But did it matter? No, it didn't. Jenny Shepherd was the happiest women alive at that moment.

She felt him grin against her lips as she deepened the kiss, tugging his hair. She fought the urge to moan, considering the audience, but didn't hold back a sigh as she pulled away.

"I should have told you eight years ago. I love you," he whispered."

"Better late then never."

He snorted.

"I love you, too, Jethro."

**R&R ;)**


End file.
